Hat clamp



Patented Apr. 6, 1948 ()FFICE'.

HAT CLAMP Henry M. Pernini', Chicago, and Nano F; Gontardl, HighlandPark, Ill.

Apnlica nn A gl s 1946, SerlalNa. 685,933.

12 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to hat clamps for use in the process ofblocking hats and; more particularly to the type of clamp utilizing a.circular expansibl-e strip to engage the sweatband of a hat, 4

It is an object of' the invention to provide an improved form of clamphaving a compressible handgrip, in which the force i outward expansionvaries with the pressure exerted" on the hand-- grip and in which meansare provided which act automatically as an incident to the release of;manual pressure to maintain the clamp in its expended-condition.

It is another object of the invention to provide an improved hat clamphaving a centrally mounted handgr-ip which is effective both to applyclamping pressure andto enable single banded positioningthereof andwhich further includes means for; enabling sing-1e handed release and;withdrawal.

It is a further objectof; the invention to produce a hat clamp whichenables the maintenance of large clamping forces as long asdesiredbutwhich at the same time is simple and straightforward inconstruction and operation and inex; pensive to manufacture.

It is a still further object to produce a hat clamp for use with aforming flange which insures that a cleaned and blocked hat isaccuratelysized;

In; one of 'its aspects it is an object of the invention to provide anexpansible hat clamp which. is automatically locking in an infinitelyadjustable condition of" expansion.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent asthe following description proceeds; taken in connection with theaccompanyingdrawin s; in which:

Figure l is a plan view of a preferred form of" hat clamp embodying theinvention.

Fig. 2 isa sectional view reduced in scale showing the hat clampofFig. 1. in its inserted position adjacent the sweatband of a hat.

Fig. 31s an enlarged sectional' view taken along line 3 --3 of Eig. 1.

Fig. 4- is an enlarged s ectionalview'taken along line 4-4- of Fig 1,.

Fig. 5' is a plan view of another form of hat clamp embodying theinvention in somewhat reduced scale as compared to Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 66 of Fig. 5.

While the invention is susceptible of various modifications andalternative constructions, we have shown in the drawing and will hereindescribe in detail the preferred embodiment; but it is to be understoodthat we do not thereby in tenci to limit the invention to the specificform disclosed but intend to cover all modifications a d. a ernat ve.ons uc ns l W thi the spirit and; scope. of the invention as, expressedin heahp dadi aims.

Referring now to the drawing it will be seen; in Fig. 1' that the clampindicated; generally atconsists r tw p rtion t t b a e ibl str p. 1 5..h h s. b int circular Q1 ptical form and" an expanding and lockingportion [41; which is mounted centrally therein. In use. the clamp isinserted into a, hat l-S- positlonedin fiaaging, i g. *3: asshown, ing... y e n Q t e amendin a d; loc ng; po Qft e deice e str p i o ced:adial y Outward an nt eful a men wi h. he s cat nd or the hat. Thisserves both to hold; the hat securely: for the steaming and hanging;operation and to smooth the surface of the sweatbandand form it to theproper size.

As to the details of'ou improved construction disc o ed. n i i l beseenthat t e st i 2. s orm of. a o ledp 'ece offlatstock a g. ter ov appn and 0 llan inner overlapping. e 2.2 oth o which a normally aused, o in close. li ng. en ag m t th he inte me iate po ti n f: he s rip. h st dnear t e e ds fthe s rip I! are bracket 1 and. 26 pivotally engaging thedivergent movable ends of ssnerally -shapad an grip he andrip inc udetwo. e s 30 and 3.2 ti y hi h a e h tch d. to. each. ot r by mea s Q i ap vot pin and. i w s pivoted to. the bra kets a d 2 y pi pi s a d .a p teh?- It will" be understood, however that in place of' the p o p ns, i lst t d. me h al n ing or pivoting means may be used which will allow asubstar tial-ly equivalent movement.

The legs ofthe handgrip which may be fiormfid by a casting process,preferably arescailoped out to provide a gripping recess 40 for thethumb, and; recesses 42 for the fingers, oi, the operator, u h ecesseover omin a y tendency to; the p o han o. d ali ns. h t p r d sur ace.s. g ipp n p ssure is. p d. t i l h note that the legs of the handgripare quite long, occupying nearly all the available diametralspace andproviding a, maximum of leverage for expanding the strip. In addition toproviding a means f or expanding the. strip it will be apparent that thehandgrip may also be employed to allow' single handed placement andadjustment of the clamp within the-hat.

In the preferred embodiment illustrated, means are provided for keepingthe ends 20, 22 of the strip in close sliding contact with theintermediate portion thereof so that the force exerted on the ends ofthe strip by the handgrip is tangential in nature. An enlarged detailView of the structure providing a slide and associated with the bracket26 is shown in Fig. 3. Here it will be observed that the end 22 of thestrip is fixed to the bracket 25 by screws 44 which preferably have fiattapered heads for riding in a longitudi nal slot 46 extending along theintermediate portion of the strip [2. The portions of the strip adjacentthe edges of the slot are preferably tapered to register with the taperof the screwhead and thereby to enable the screwhead to be completelybelow the level of the outwardly presented surface of the strip. Thisconstruction, although keeping the end 22 of the strip in intimatesliding engagement with the strip body, completely avoids the danger ofmarring the sweatband material during the process of adjustment andapplying clamping pressure.

A somewhat similar arrangement is used at the overlapping end 29attached to the leg 38 (Fig. 4.). Here, however, the bracket 24 issolidly connected to the outer one of the two sliding portions of thestrip by flatheaded screws 43, and a longitudinal slot 50 is formed inthe body of the strip to provide access between the end of the strip 23and the associated leg of the handgrip. As an additional means forinsuring alignment of the relatively movable portions of the strip,bent-over registering edges 52 are used. Such edges are formed on theedge of the clamp which are designed, in use,.to lie above the level ofthe sweatband so as not to groove it. Then, too, the edges 52 serve as alimit stop for insertion and protect the stitching at the edgev f theband from the effects of steam.

In accordance with one aspect of the invention means are provided forbiasing the legs 30 and 32 of the handgrip away from one another, thelatter position corresponding to a condition of minimum diameter of thestrip and enabling ready insertion of the clamp Within even the smallestsizes of hats. In the present embodiment the latter is accomplished byconstructing the strip l2 of springy material and prestressing it sothat it tends normally to assume a minimum diameter. Fig. 1 shows theclamp in the latter condition.

I It is apparent from the foregoing that manual pressure on the grip 28will cause the strip to expand outwardly, To hold the strip in itsposition of maximum expansion and to prevent retrograde movement betweenthe legs of the grip while the hat is being treated, we provide, in thepreferred embodimentfa friction ratchet. The latter may include anarcuate rod or bar 54 which is circular in section and attached near theend of leg 30 by means of a pivot pin 55. The rod is freely slidablewith respect to the remaining leg 32 of the handgrip and is lockinglyengaged by means of a locking tab 58. The latter is pivoted for movementin the plane of the bar 54 since it is mounted on a pivot pin 60 on thecentral portion of the leg 32. At its outer end the locking tab has anaperture through which the rod 54 is passed and which is just slightlylarger than the outer diameter of the rod. The locking tab 58, or atleast the portion thereof surrounding the aperture, is preferablyconstructed of metal of extreme hardness and theedges of the apertureare preferably sharp so that under flogzked 4 conditions such edges maybite into or seize the relatively softer arcuate rod 54. Means areincluded in the ratchet for biasing the locking tab 58 outwardly fromthe leg 32 so that the sharp edges of the aperture 62 are at all timesin a position to produce a locking engagement. In the present instance asimple compression coil spring 64 bridging the leg 32 and the lockingtab is used. 7

While the judgment of the operator as to the pressure to be appliedenables the above described clamp to be effectively used, neverthelessit will be noted that additional means are provided for insuring thatthe sweatband is expanded to exactly the proper size. In the presentembodiment this is accomplished by indicia it which are stamped orotherwise applied to the arcuate bar 54. Such indicia may read directlyin terms of the hat size desired, generally increments of eighths of anintegral hat size. Any desired type of cooperating pointer may be usedto cooperate with the indicating marks; however, we prefer to use theright-hand edge '1! of the leg 32 for this purpose. This means forindicating the exact size to which a sweatband has been expanded isparticularly advantageous since heretofore it has been necessary todepend upon the internal diameter of a selected forming flange forperforming this function. Thus if a given hat happened to have aparticularly thick felt body, hat band, and sweatband, the blocked sizewas likely to be too small. Conversely, if the felt and associated bandswere thinner than average, the hat returned to the customer afterblocking would, in all probability, be too large. In our improvedconstruction, however, the size of the blocked hat is determineddirectly and with absolute accuracy as an incident to clamping the hatwithin the flange. The concept of direct rather than indirectdetermination of a proper hat size in addition to greatly speeding upthe blocking process and enabling it to be accomplished by an unskilledoperator has the advantage that the customer is invariably satisfiedwith the work returned to him.

Although the operation of the device will be apparent from the foregoingdescription, it will be helpful to summarize it briefly. Initially thestrip It will be in a condition of minimum diameter due to theprestressing or coiling of the strip in manufacture, such conditioncorresponding to maximum separation of the legs 38, 32 comprising thegrip. The handgrip is grasped lightly and the clamp inserted into itsposition within the sweatband. Upon applying a greater gripping force,the ends of the strip 12 are forced toward one another and the bandexpands outwardly, flexibly adjusting itself to the oval shape of thehat and hanging ring. The gripping pressure is increaseduntil thedesired size is indicated by the indicia "ill or alternatively until theoperator can feel that proper clamping pressure is being applied,whereupon manual pressure is released. Any tendency toward retrogrademovement of the arcuate rod '55 results in further cocking of thelocking tab 58 and consequent seizing of the rod by the sharpened edgesof the aperture 62.

In order to remove 'the clamp from the hat after the flanging andsteaming have been completed, it is merely necessary for the operator toagain apply gripping pressure which disengages the ratchet. While suchpressure is being applied, the operator need only press the tip ofmanner one. oi. his. gripping fin er against. the. lockin tab 5.8direction to compress; the coil spring 6141. Subsequent release of"gripping pressure. will then cause the clamp to automatically assume acondition of minimum. diameter and the clamp may. be removed from thehat.

Alternate construction Although he; p ef rred form of: the hat clampdiscussed immediately above has b en. found. to be; extremely well.suited for its. intended usa. the modification. show-n Figs... 5. and 61possesses the. same primary advantages while having the fiurtheradvantage of being simpler and cheaper to manufiacture. Here. a strip.of springy mate.- rial i211 is used which, asin. the previous. embodiaiszprererably. prestresscd so. thatit. is nor mally ofa minimum diameterproducingv maximum overlap of the ends 20a; and 22a; The handgrip.includes legs. dilaand 32a which are divergently arranged and which arepreferably formed of light gauge metallic. channel.

The legs 36a. 32a are-mutually. pinned at their inner ends by a pivotpin 3.6a and are further pivotedat their outer ends to brackets Na and26a by pins 36d and 38a respectively. The brackets are joined to. theoverlapping ends 200: and: 22a respectively of the strip, the crosssection ofbracket Ella being shown in the sectional View of Fig. 6 Thereit will be seenthat the bracket consists merely of a pair of integralears which are cut from the strip itself and bent inwardly alonganonsevered edge to present a mounting which allows passage of the pin38a. It will be understood that the remaining bracket 25a may be formedin the same manner from the overlapping portion 29a of the strip. In thelatter case, however, a longitudinal groove must be out intheintermediate portion of the strip 12a for passage of the bracket 240.into the circular confines of the strip. Although; the

latter detail has not been specifically illustrated, the manner ofaccomplishing such construction will be obvious sincecompletelyanalogous to thatshown in Fig. l in connection with theprevious embodiment.

In order to keep the legs of the grip in a locked condition after theyare compressed; a ratchet arrangement is used consisting of an arcuatebar fidohaving teeth oriented to the left as viewedin Fig. 5. The bar ispivoted to one of the. legs 3 .11 y a p n 55a, While the opposite ortoothed end is, received in an aperture in the remainingl'eg, The loweredge ofthe, aperture is preferably sharpened and constructed of hardmaterial for cooperation with the ratchet teeth. A tension spring 64a,which in the present embodiment is shown anchored to theleg 36a,normally maintains, the ratchet teeth, in en ement. The ratchet. may bereleased, however, by one of the fingers of the gripping hand of thoperator merely by applying upward pressure to a small knob. orprojection 59 on the arcuate bar.

The size to whiohthe band l2a is expanded is indicated accurately byindicia lilo on the arcuate rod 54a, the selected size being alined withany desired indicating pointer such as the right-hand edge 1 I'd of theleg 32a.

The operation of this embodiment will not be discussed sinceit iscompletely analogous to that already discussed. Suffice it to. say thatrctrograde movement is prevented by means of the toothed ratchet andthat in this embodimentthe adjustment is limited to finite stepsdepending upon the spacing of the teeth in the ratchet.

Although the use of the clamp has. been dc,

scribed in connection with. the clamping of a.

hat in. aflanging ring, itwil-l: be obvious that the clamp. is similarlywell suited for use as a hat stretcher. I'f'itis desired tostretch ahat: to size it. is merely necessary to. insert the clamp and applygripping pressure to an extent dependent.

upon: the type of headgear and the amount ofenlargement desired. Due tothe improved loclza ing means, the exact amount of expansion. may bemaintained for extended periods of time.

With regard to the materials of construction, we prefer to use stainlesssteel. It will be ap parent, however, that other metals or alloys may beused which are'corrosion resistant and which further have the requiredstrength and elasticity.

We claim asour invention: 1. A clamp for use in the blocking of hatscomprising a. circular sWeatband-engaglng strip having inner and outeroverlapping ends. a generally V-shaped grip having legs pivoted formovement toward one another and lying within said circular strip, meansconnecting the diverging ends of said legs to said overlapping endsrespectively of' said strip so that manual inward pressure on aid sscaus s. n in reas in the. av ra e diameter. of sa d circu ar. tr p. and.locking m ans to main ain said strip in its expanded condition as anincident to the release of manual. pressure therefrom.

2. A clamp for use in, the blocking of hats comprising; a. generallycircular sweatband-engaging strip having overlapping ends, a grip havinglegs pivoted for movement toward one another and lying within saidcircular strip, means connecting themovable ends of said legs tosaidoverlapping ends respectively of; said: strip so. that manual grippingpressure on said legs causes an increase in the average diameter of,said. circular strip; looking; bar pivoted to one of, thelegsahd'slidable transversely with respect tothe other and means actingon the slidable end of said locking-barior maintaining said legs in theposition of closest.

ppr ach up n release or manual pressure there-- from.

A. clamp for use in the blocking of hatsoomprising a generally circularsWeatband-engaging strip having flatly overlapping ends, a handgriplength ofsaid circular strip, an arcuate bar pivoted on one of said legsand slidably received in the other nearthe movable ends respectively ofsaid legs, ratchet means associated with the slid aible end of saidarcuate barcausing locking of the legs against separating movement uponthe release of manual pressure therefrom, and means manipulable by thefingers of the hand while grasping said grip for disengaging saidratchet means.

4. A clamp for use in the blocking of hats comprising a, generallycircular sweatband-engaging strip having flatly overlapping ends, ahandgrip lying within the confines of said strip and having legs pivotedfor movement toward one another, means connecting the movable ends ofsaid Iss5.

to said overlapping ends respectively of, said oted on one of said legsand slidably received in the other near the movable ends respectively ofsaid legs, ratchet means associated with the slidable end of saidarcuate bar causin locking of the legs against separating movement uponthe release of manual pressure therefrom, and means for manuallydisengaging said ratchet means, said strip being prestressed to assume acondition of minimum average diameter and maximum divergence of saidlegs upon release of said ratchet means.

5. A clamp for use in the blocking of hats comprising a generallycircular strip having inner and outer overlapping ends, a handgripincluding two mutually pivoted and diverging legs lying within thecircular confines of said strip, means for attaching the ends of saidlegs respectively to the overlapping ends of said strip so that grippingof said legs causes radial expansion of said strip, a rod bridging themovable ends of said legs, said rod being in engagement with one of saidlegs and slidable with respect to the other, and friction ratchet meansassociated with said other leg to engage said bar and prevent retrogrademovement thereof upon release of manual pressure from said grip.

6. A hat clamp comprising a generally circular strip having flatlyoverlapping ends, a handgrip including two legs pivoted to one anotherfor movement in theplane of said circular strip, means for attaching theends of said legs to the overlapping ends of said strip so that grippingof said legs causes radial expansion of said strip, a rod bridging themovable ends of said legs, said rod being in engagement with one of saidlegs and slidable with respect to the other, and friction ratchet meanson said other leg including a locking tab pivoted thereon for movementin the plane of said rod and having an aperture therein for the freeadmission of said rod, said tab being arranged so that the passage ofsaid rod therethrough upon application of gripping force may readilyoccur but so that any retrograde movement of said rod causes cooking ofsaid tab and consequent locking engagement 1 between the edges of saidaperture and said rod.

'7. A hat clamp comprising 'a strip bent into circular form and havingoverlapping ends, an operating handgrip lying inside said strip andhaving opposed legs mounted for movement toward one another, means forrespectively attaching the ends of said legs to the ends of said stripso that grasping of said handgrip causes radial expansion of said strip,a rod bridging the movable ends of said legs, means mounting said rod inengagement with one of said legs but slidable with respect to the other,and friction ratchet means on said other leg including a looking tabpivoted thereon for movement in the plane of said rod and having anaperture therein to freely receive said rod, said tab being movable intoa cooked position with respect to said rod in which any tendency towardretrograde movement causes the opposed edges of said aperture to seizesaid rod, and biasing means for maintalning said tab in its cockedposition.

8. A hat clamp comprising a generally circular strip having overlappingends, a. generally V- shaped handgrip lying within the confines of saidstrip, said handgrip including two legs mutually pivoted at one end andhaving their other ends attached to the ends respectively of said stripso that manual pressure on said grip expands said circular stripradially outward, a

, oriented in a direction to prevent retrograde movment of said bar uponrelease of manual pressure from said grip.

9. A hat clamp comprising a generally circular strip having inner andouter overlapping ends, a handgrip lying within said strip, saidhandgrip including two legs mutually pivoted at one end and having theirother ends attached to the ends of said strip respectively so thatmanual pressure on said grip expands said strip outwardly, meansincluding a toothed ratchet bridging said legs for preventing retrogrademovement of said legs upon release of manual pressure on said grip,resilient means for maintaining said ratchet in engagement, and meansmanipulable with the fingers of the gripping hand of an operator forreleasing said ratchet.

10. A hat clamp comprising a circular sweatband-engaging strip havingflatly overlapping ends, a handgrip lying within said strip and havingless pivoted for movement toward one another, means connecting themovable ends of said legs to the overlapping ends respectively of saidstrip so that manual gripping pressure causes said strip to expandoutwardly, said strip being prestressed so that it normally assumes aposition of minimum diameter, andmeans maintaining at least one end ofthe strip in intimate sliding engagement with the flatly adjacentintermediate portion of said strip.

11.A clamp for use in cooperation with a forming flange in the blockingof hats comprising a generally circular sweatband-engaging strip havinginner and outer overlapping ends, means including a compressiblehandgrip for increasing the average diameter of said strip uponapplicationof increased gripping pressure, and indicating meansoperating as an incident to compressing said handgrip for indicating thehat size to which the strip is expanded.

12. A clamp for use with a-forming flange in the blocking of hatscomprising a generally circular sweatband-engaging strip havingoverlapping ends, a generally V-shaped grip having legs pivoted formovement toward one another and lying within said circular strip, meansconnecting the movable ends of said legs to said overlapping endsrespectively of said strip so that manual gripping pressure on said legscauses an increase in the average diameter of said circular strip, alocking bar pivoted to one of said legs and slidable transversely withrespect to the other, means acting on the slidable end of said lockingbar for maintaining said strip in a condition of selected averagediameter, and means including indicia on said locking bar for indicatingthe selected average diameter of said strip directly in terms of hatsize.

HENRY M. PERNINI. NANO F. CONTARDI.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES. PATENTS Number Name Date 1,639,331 Diamond Aug. 16, 19272,118,392 Appel May 24, 1938

